Flash bulb attachment for cameras



A 1954 J. A. WRIGHT 2,688,071

FLASH BULB ATTACHMENT FOR CAMERAS Filed May 23, 1852 3 Sheets-Sheet l IN VEN TOR.

// m5 //0 //4 JAMES A. Pi e/6H7;

F/ G. .13. BY

I WWMMWMMQW JTTMIVEVS g- 31, 1954 J. A. WRIGHT FLASH BULB ATTACHMENT FOR CAMERAS 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May 23, 1952 ATTOENEYS J. A. WRIGHT 2,688,071

FLASH BULB ATTACHMENT FOR CAMERAS 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Aug. 31, 1954 Filed May 23, 1952 Patented Aug. 31, 1954 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 4 Claims. 1

This inventon relates to camera accessories, and more particularly to an improved flash bulb and reflector attachment for cameras.

The main object of the invention is to provide a novel and improved extensible flash bulb holder and reflector attachment for cameras, said attachment being simple in construction, being compact in size, and being easy to manipulate.

A further object of the invention is to provide an improved flash bulb holding and reflector attachment for cameras, said attachment being easy to install on a camera, being sturdy in construction, being foldable to a very compact con dition, and involving inexpensive components.

A still further object of the invention is to provide an improved extensible flash bulb holding and reflector attachment for cameras which may be normally housed in back of a camera in a compact, out-of-the-way position, and which may be readily extended to an operative position, the attachment including improved flash bulb socket means and including extensible reflector means which automatically extends to provide a large reflective area around the flash bulb responsive to the extension of the socket-supporting means to operative position.

A still further object of the invention is to provide an improved adjustable flash bulb holding and reflector attachment for cameras, said attachment including storage means for electrical components, and being provided with means for automatically increasing the reflector area thereof responsive to the movement of the flash bulb supporting socket thereof to an operative pcsition relative to the camera, the attachment being provided with novel and improved means for ejecting a flash bulb after use of the attachment, and being further arranged so that the attachment may be readily folded to an inoperative, substantially completely housed condition at the rear of the camera after use thereof.

A still further object of the invention is to provide an improved flash bulb attachment for cameras which embodies novel and improved m ans for housing the bulb-supporting portion thereof and its associated reflector in an out-of-the-way, protected position when not in use, and for rapidly and easily moving the socket and reflector portion of the attachment into operative position, the improved attachment being provided with means for maintaining constant orientation of the flash bulb socket portion and its associated reflector relative to the camera while it is being moved from its inoperative to its operative position, and vice versa, the arrangement being such that the reflector portion of the attachment is automatically extended to provide a large reflector area around the flash bulb socket when the socket-supporting portion of the attachment is moved to operative position, and at the same time, the attachment is locked in extended position and remains locked until manually released by the retraction of the extensible elements of the reflector.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description and claims, and from the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a rear perspective View of a camera provided with an improved flash bulb and reflector attachment constructed in accordance with the present invention, the attachment being shown arranged in operative position.

Figure 2 is a side elevational view, partly in vertical cross section, of the flash bulb and reflector attachment shown in Figure 1.

Figure 3 is an enlarged front elevational view of the upper portion of the attachment illustrated in Figures 1 and 2, showing the flash bulb and the extensible reflector associated therewith, the reflector being shown in extended position.

Figure 4 is a horizontal cross sectional View taken on the line 44 of Figure 2.

Figure 5 is an enlarged vertical cross sectional detail view taken on the line 5-5 of Figure 4.

Figure 6 is a horizontal cross sectional detail view taken on the line of Figure 3.

Figure 7 is a fragmentary rear elevational view, partly in cross section, of the upper portion of the improved flash bulb and reflector attachment, showing the locking means associated with the supporting arms for the bracket element for the flash bulb socket and reflector and the releasing means associated therewith.

Figure 8 is a vertical cross sectional view taken on the line 3-8 of Figure 6'.

Figure 9 is a cross sectional view taken on the line 9-9 of Figure 8.

Figure 10 is an enlarged perspective detail view of the locking arm for the central reflector element of the flash bulb and reflector attachment of Figures 1 to 9.

Figure 11 is an enlarged perspective View of the tripping element employed to release the arm of Figure 10 when the socket-supporting member is extended to operative position.

Figure 12 is a side elevational View of the camera of Figure l with the improved flash bulb and reflector attachment shown in folded inoperative position.

Figure 13 is a fragmentary top plan detail view showing the operative elements of the bulb-ejecting portion of the flash bulb and reflector attachment of Figs. 1 to 12.

Referring to the drawings, 2i designates a camera of conventional construction and 22 designates an angle bracket secured to the bottom of the camera by a thumb screw 23 engaged in the tripod-connecting aperture provided in the bottom of the camera. The angle bracket 22 is provided with the upstanding, dovetail arm 24, and the horizontal arm 25 of the bracket 22 is slotted so that the arm 25 may be fastened in engagement with the back of the camera.

Designated at 26 is an angle bracket having an upstanding arm 2's which is formed with a dovetail groove slidably engaged with the dovetail arm 24 and frictionally locked therewith, as by providing a friction screw 21 threadedly engaged in the arm 24 which is frictionally engageable with the inside surface of the dovetail groove in arm 21.

The angle bracket 25 is provided with the rear wardly extending horizontal arm 28 on which is disposed the horizontally extending, longitudinally slotted base bar 25, the base bar 29 being adjustably supported on the arm 25 and being secured on the base bar 29 by a clamping member 3| having a depending threaded shank extending through the slot in the bar 29 on which is threadedly engaged a knurled clamping nut 35, as shown in Figure 1. As shown in Figure 1, the clamping plate 3! is rectangular in shape and is dimensioned so as to be engageable with an adjacent upstanding frame portion 34 to limit rotation of the plate 3i. Rigidly secured to the base bar 29 is a frame including the vertical hollow side post elements 35, 35 and the rear wall element 31 which is provided with the large rectangular aperture 35 to provide clear viewing of the rear of the camera. The hollow post elements 55 and 36 are employed to house various electrical components associated with the flash bulb circuit, such as dry cell batteries and condenser units. The post element 35 is provided at its lower portion with the socket 39 to which the Synchro cable may be connected for synchronizing the operation of the flash bulb with the camera shutter and the lower portion of the post member 35 is provided with a self-shorting socket 50 by means of which extension cables may be connected into the flash bulb circuit of the attachment.

Designated at 12 are respective hollow arms pivoted to the inside surfaces of the top end portions of the post elements 35 and 36 for parallel swinging movement from a position between the post elements to an elevated position above said post elements, shown in Figure l. Pivotally connected to the ends of the arms il, 52 is a bracket structure shown generally at 43, said bracket structure comprising the hollow vertical side elements M and 55 in which the ends of the hollow arms 4! and 52 are received. The forward portions of the side elements 44 and 15 are suitably slotted to allow at least 180 rotation of the arms 4! and 52 in a counterclockwise direction, relative to the elements 55 and 45, as viewed in Figure 2, whereby the arms 4! and 42 may be received in the hollow housing portions 55 and 55 of the bracket member 43.

Designated at M, 45 are respective grooved rubber clip elements secured to the inside surfaces of the side elements M and 35, and which are employed to grip the cable employed in the camera when not in use, said cable being looped and retained between the elements Ml and 45 by engagement in the grooves of the clip elements. The respective side elements 44 and 45 are provided with yieldable spring-biased detent elements 45 engageable in looking recesses A l provided in the inside surfaces of the post members 35 and 35 to releasably lock the bracket structure 43 in housed position between the post members.

Disposed in one end portion of each of the arms M and 42 and rigidly keyed to the respective hollow post elements 35 and 36 are gears 55. Rigidly keyed to the respective housing ele ments 4d and as and disposed in the top ends of the arms 55 and 42 are the similar gears t1. Journaled in each of the arms ll and .2 is a train of gears 28 which are identical with the gears 553 and :3! and which serve to couple each gear 55 to the gear 4'! inthe opposite end of its associated arm. Therefore, the gear trains comprising the gears 55, Q8 and 41 act to maintain constant orientation of the bracket structure 4 5 relative to the optical axis of the camera during swinging movement of the arms s! and 42, namely, serve to maintain the optical axis of the camera parallel to the optical axis of the bracket assembly 43 at all times. From Figure 4 it will be noted that electrical contacts are provided on the arm 42 and on the hollow post member 36, said contacts being shown at 49 and 512 and being engageable responsive to the movement of the arms :2! and 52 to their elevated positions shown in Figure 1. These contacts are employed to establish the electrical circuit associated with the flash bulb responsive to the movement of the flash bulb-supporting bracket assembly 53 to its elevated operative position, as will be presently described. The contacts are disengaged when the arms 4! and 42 are swung downwardly from the elevated operative positions thereof shown in Figure 1, whereby the flash bulb is disconnected from its source of energization.

The bracket assembly 43 includes the upstanding wall portion SE to which is secured the annular concave disc element 52, and rotatably disposed inside the annular disc element 52 is an additional concave annular element 53 formed with the cylindrical sleeve portion 54. Designated at 55 is a cylindrical housing which is rigidly secured to the vertical wall 5! and which extends axially relative to the bowl-shaped elements 53 and 52. As shown in Figure 5, the sleeve member 55 is rotatably mounted on the cylindrical housing 54. The disc member 52 is formed with an annularly grooved collar element 5c in which is rotatably engaged a flat ring 5'! to which is secured a headed pin element 58, said pin element being in turn threadedly engaged with the sleeve element 54, as shown in Figure 5. The disc element 53 may therefore be rotated relative to the bowl-shaped member 52 by rotating the pin member 58. Surrounding the sleeve element 5Q is a coiled spring 59 which has one end Ell anchored in a recess in the disc member 52 and which has its other end 6| anchored in the sleeve member 5 3 to bias the disc member 52 counterclockwise, as viewed in Figure 3.

As shown in Figure 5, the cylindrical housing member 54 is reduced in diameter at its forward end, as shown at 62, and secured on the shoulder thus defined by a ring nut 63 is a central reflector disc 64. Pivoted to the peripheral portion of the reflector disc 64 at 55 are respective extensile reflector segments 66 which are connected to the rotatable disc member 53 :by respective link arms 61. As shown in Figure 3, the link arms 61 are arranged to extend the reflector segment .56 outwardly responsive to the counterclockwise rotation of the disc member relative to the stationary bracket structure :33. The coiled spring 59 biases the segments to their extended positions, since said spring biases the disc member 53 counterclockwise, as viewed in Figure 3, as above explained.

As shown in Figure 5, the disc member 53 is disposed inwardly adjacent to the stationary bowl-shaped element 52, and the extensile reflector elements 65 are disposed between the periph eral portion of the central reflector member 64 and the inside surface of the bowl-shaped member 52, the link arms a? being located in the space between the extensile elements (it and said bowlshaped member 52.

Rigidly secured to the rotatable disc member 53 is the depending arm 58 which is formed at its free end with the inclined flange cs. Secured to the bottom wall ill of the bracket housing ii; is an upstanding post member ii to the top end of which is pivoted a detent lever 72, said lever being biased in a counterclockwise direction, as viewed in Figure 6, by a coiled spring l3 surrounding the post element 'ii and having its lower end secured to said post element and its upper end engaged in an aperture in the lever. The lever 12 has a first arm it which is lockingly engageable beneath the edge of the flange til, as shown in Figure 8. When the arm @8 is lockingly engaged by the arm id, as shown in Figure 8, the reflector elements Eli are locked in contracted positions. When the arm 68 is disengaged from the detent arm it, the reflector elements 66 will expand to their extended positions, under the force of the biasin spring 59, as above explained.

Designated at 75 is a plate member formed at its lower portion with a vertical slot '56 and at its upper portion with a camming notch i1. One side edge of the plate member i5 is formed with a stiffening flange l8 and the body of the plate member is provided with a pin element It projecting in a direction opposite the flange 16, as shown in Figure 11. The plate member '55 is yieldably secured to the lower portion of the inside wall of the hollow side element 45 of the bracket structure it by a so cw Bil which extends through the slot "iii and which is provided with a cushioning spring 8i, whereby the head of the screw exerts a yieldable clamping action on the lower portion of the plate member lb. The plate member is biased downwardly by a coiled spring connecting the lowerportion of the flange it to the bottom wall ll] of the bracket housing. The pin element 719 projects through a slot 83 formed in the inside wall of the vertical housing element l5, said inside wall having secured th reto a carrying plate 84 formed with a horizontal corrugation 85 against which the upper portion of the late member 'i5 is engageable responsive to elevation of said plate member. The lever 12 is formed with an arm 86 which is received in the notch and which is carnmingly engaged thereby responsive to the elevation of the plate m mber it to rotate the lever member 12 in a clockwise direction, as viewed in Figure 6, sufiiciently to release the flanged end 69 of the arm 68 responsive to the elevation of the plate member The periphery of the top end portion of the arm i2 is formed with an abutment shoulder 8'! which cammingly engages the pin 19 at the completion of the elevation of the housing 43 to its operative position, shown in Figure 1, whereby the plate member 15 is lifted to the position thereof shown in Figure 8, causing the arm 14 of lever 12 to be rotated out of engagement from the flange 69. Therefore, the control arm'88 of the rotary disc member 53 is automatically released when the bracket member 43 is elevated to its operative position shown in Figure 1.

Slidably engaged in the wall 5i for horizontal movement transverse to the housing elements 44 and 45 are the respective locking bars 88 and 89 which are lockingly engageable behind the vertical edges of the arms 4| and :32 to lock said arms in fully elevated positions. The inner ends of the arms 88 and 89 are provided with pins 58 and 9! which slidably engage in respective camming slots 92 and 83 in a rotatable plate member 98 pivotally connected at to the vertical wall 5!. The plate member 94 is formed with a camrning surface which includes a cam notch 96, as shown in Figure 7, the control arm 68 having secured thereto a pin 9? which is cammingly engageable with the periphery of the camming plate 94. When the control arm titis released, as above described, at the completion of the elevation of the bracket housing 33 to its operative position, the counterclockwise rotation of the arm E8, as viewed in Figure 7, rotates the plate member 94 counterclockwise, whereby the camming notches 92 and 93 move the locking bars 88 and 8.9 outwardly into locking engagement with the respective arms ll and When the control arm 68 is rotated counterclockwise, as viewed in Figure 6, from its dotted View position to its full line position, the pin 9? engages the cam plate 94 and rotates the cam plate clockwise, causing the camming slots 92 and S3 to move the bars 88 and 89 inwardly, releasin the arms 4i and 42. This is accomplished by rotating the headed pin member 58 from its dotted view position, shown in Figure 7 to its full line position shown therein.

As shown in Figure 5, the outer edge of the ring 57 is retained by an arcuate reta ning ring 98 secured to the outer flange 99 of the sleeve m mber 54. The sleeve member has secured therein a socket shell ice in the end of which is mounted a bearing ring it! against which one end of a coil spring it? engages, the other end of the spring engagin against another rin Hi3. Ring H33 is provided with diametrically opposed peripheral lugs Hi3 slidably engaged in longi tudinal grooves l 04 formed in th inside surface of the socket shell not, said grooves terminating short of the end of shell tilt to prevent ejection of the ring I83 when the bulb is ejected, as will be subsequently described.

Designated at m4 is the center terminal of the lamp socket which comprises the looped end of a strip of conductive metal adapted to engage the center terminal of a lamp bulb inserted in the socket sleeve I00. The contact M4 is connected by a suitable conductor and through the contacts 49 and 50 to the flash bulb energizing means. A conventional flash bulb, such as the bulb shown at we, having a base ID? of the bayonet-pin type may be inserted in the socket, the socket sleeve I ill! being formed with opposed bayonet slots Hi8 for receiving the pins 5 of the lamp base. The socket shell is retained in position by the reduced inner portion 82 of the cylindrical housing 54. The socket shell 55!) is therefore held stationary by its frictional engagement with the reduced portion 62 of the housing 54'. The reduced portion 62 ,ofthe housing 54 is formed 7 with the slot 62 providing clearance for the pins I09 of the lamp base M37. The socket shell I is formed inwardly of the slots 583 with respective rectangular enlarged apertured portions Hi3 defining shoulders ill against which the pins BBQ may be lockingly engaged when the lamp base it? is inserted in the socket, the pins see first being moved through the slots H38 and then the lamp base being rotated to engage th pins N39 with the shouldered edges i l of the apertures l l9. Designated at l i2 is a knurled knob member which is rotatably mounted on the outer end portion of the sleeve and which is formed with diametrically opposed inwardly extending elongated finge:s H3, M3, the ends of the fingers being formed with notches i i in which the pins 39 are receivable. The knob H2 is retained on the end of the sleeve member 543 by a retaining screw i l 5 threaded through the wall of knob I I2 and extending into a slot i i5 formed in the sleeve St for preventing relative movement in an axial direction between knob M2 and sleeve 5 5, as shown in Figure 5. When the bulb is inserted, the knob i i2 is arranged so that the notches El i thereof are in registry with th slots Hit of the socket shell 3%, whereby the base pins m9 of the lamp will enter the notches i it. When the lampis rotated, the pins iiiil lockingly engage with the shouldered portions i l i of apertures i it, as above described. When it is desired to eject the lamp, the knob 5 E2 is rotated to return the pins its into positions of registry with the slots Hi8, whereby the coiled spring it? expands to eject the lamp bulb from the socket. The lamp bulb may thus be ejected without necessitating manual contact of the operator therewith, which is a definite advantage since it is not necessary for the operator to wait until the bulb has cooled to a reasonable temperature when he wishes to remove the bulb from the attachment to fold the attachment to its inoperative position.

When the device is not in use, the housing portion it is received between the hollow post members and 35, as shown in Figure 12. When it is desired to move the bracket portion 53 to its elevated operative position, such as shown in Figure l, the operator pulls the bracket assembly 33 outwardly, as by grasping the top and bottom edges of the bracket assembly and pulling the bracket assembly rearwardly and upwardly to the elevated position thereof shown in Figure 1. As the bracket assembly 53 reaches its final position, the control arm s8 is released, as above described, allowing the reflector segments 65 to be extended by the expansion of the coiled spring 59 and at the same time the arms ll and d2 are locked by the outward movement of the locking bars 88 and 89 resulting from the rotation of the-plate member 9 caused by the releasing movement of the control arm t3, as above explained. A fiash bulb may then be inserted in the socket and the necessary electrical connections made for the operation of the device. After the operation has been completed, thebulb is ejected, as above described, and the reflector segments 65 are retracted by rotating the pin member 58 from the dotted line position thereof in Figure 7 to the full line position thereof, as explained above, whereby the locking arms 88 and 85 are retracted. When the pin member 58 is in the full line position shown in Figure 7, the bracket assembly "53 may be moved rearwardly and downwardly to inoperative position. When the bracket assembly @3 is elevated to operative position, the shoulder 87 engages the pin element 19, causing the trip member '15 to be elevated and rotated to the position shown in Figure 8, due to the camming cooperation thereof with corrugation 85, which causes member 86 to be rotated releasing arm 58. In said operative position, member '55 descends for the length of slot it, with the pin element 19 engaging the side surface of arm 42. When the bracket assembly is moved toward inoperative lowered position the arm @2 disengages from pin element 19, allowing the member to rotate inwardly relative to hous ng element 55, thus resetting the member 75 for subsequent tripping action on the member M. Th bracket assembly &3 may then be rotated downwardly and rearwardly to a position wherein it is housed between the hollow post elements 35 and 35, as above described.

It will thus be seen that by the procedure above described the attachment has been returned to the folded inoperative position shown in Figure 12.

It will be further apparent that the position of the attachment relative to the camera may be altered by adjusting the base bar 25! relative to the supporting angle bracket 28, the base bar 29 being locked in adjusted position by means of the clamping nut 30.

While described and illustrated in connection with a specific conventional type of camera, the device may be readily adapted for use on other cameras, such as on reflex-type cameras by the provision of suitable bracket means for securing the attachment to the camera, the bracket means preferably being provided with adjustable swivel means for positioning the attachment on either the right side or the left side of the camera, as desired.

While a specific embodiment of an improved flash bulb and reflector attachment for a camera has been disclosed in the foregoing description, it will be understood that various modifications within the spirit of the invention may occur to those skilled in the art. Therefore, it is intended that no limitations be placed on the invention except as defined by the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

l. A fiash bulb attachment for cameras comprising a frame member adapted to be secured to the rear portion of a camera, said frame member including a pair of upstanding spaced parallel supports and means rigidly connecting the lower portions of the supports, respective arms pivoted to the upper ends of the supports for parallel swinging movement from a position between said supports to an elevated position above the supports, bracket means pivotally connected to the top ends of said arms and being receivable between said arms ,a flash light bulb socket mounted on said bracket means, a first reflector element rigidly secured to said bracket means around said bulb socket, a plurality of additional reflector elements pivoted to said firs reflector element for outward swinging movement and being arranged to define extensions of said first refiector element, a control element rotatably mounted on said bracket means, means drivingly interconnecting said control element to said additional reflector elements, spring means biasing said control element for rotation in a direction to extend the additional reflector responsive to movement of said arms to an elevated position above the supports.

2. A flash bulb attachment for cameras comprising a frame member adapted to be secured to the rear portion of a camera, said frame member including a pair of upstanding spaced parallel supports and means rigidly connecting the lower portions of the supports, respective arms pivoted to the upper ends of the supports for parallel swinging movement from a position between said supports to an elevated position above the supports, bracket means pivotally connected to the top ends of said arms and being receivable between said arms, a flash light bulb socket mounted on said bracket means, a first reflector element rigidly secured to said bracket means around said bulb socket, a plurality of additional reflector elements pivoted to said first reflector element for outward swinging movement and being arranged to define extensions of said first reflector element, a control element rotatably mounted on said bracket means, means drivingly interconnecting said control element to said additional reflector elements, spring means biasing said control element for rotation in a direction to extend the additional reflector elements relative to the first reflector element, releasable detent means lockingly engaging said control element to prevent rotation thereof, means on said arms releasing said detent means responsive to movement of said arms to an elevated position above the supports, a locking member movably mounted on said bracket means and being lockingly engageable with one of said arms, and means drivingly coupling said locking member to said control element.

3. A flash bulb attachment for cameras comprising a frame member adapted to be secured to the rear portion of a camera, said frame member including a pair of spaced parallel supports and means rigidly connecting the lower portions of the supports, respective arms pivoted to the upper ends of the supports for parallel swinging movement from a position between said supports to an extended position spaced from the supports, bracket means pivotally connected to the top ends of said arms and being receivable between said arms, a flash light bulb socket mounted on said bracket means, a reflector secured to said bracket means around said bulb socket, a locking member movably mounted on said bracket means and being lockingly engageable with one of said arms, and means moving said locking member into locking engagement with said one arm responsive to the movement of said arms to the extended position relative to the supports.

4. A flash bulb attachment for cameras comprising a frame adapted to be secured to a camera, respective arms pivoted to said frame for parallel swinging movement from a lowered position to an elevated position, a bulb-supporting member pivotally mounted on said arms, a reflector mounted on said bulb-supporting member, means coupling said bulb-supporting member to said frame and being arranged to maintain constant orientation of said bulb-supporting member relative to said frame while the arms swing relative to the frame, a locking member movably mounted on said bulb-supporting member and being lockingly engageable with one of said arms, and means moving said locking member into engagement with said one arm responsive to the movement of said arms to said elevated position.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 310,611 Peck Jan. 13, 1885 1,216,696 John Feb. 20, 1917 1,326,650 Doerr Dec. 30, 1919 1,397,803 Ensor et al Nov. 22, 1921 2,205,860 Olds June 25, 1940 2,388,995 Pallock Nov. 13, 1945 2,596,887 Brundage May 18, 1952 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 549,332 Germany Apr. 26, 1932 727,915 Germany Nov. 14, 1942 

